Bitdefender has been on the cutting edge of ransomware protection , and the current edition includes several layers of protection against pernicious ransomware that aims to protect you even against brand-new types of ransomware. The Advanced Threat Defense feature supplements regular antivirus scanning with behavior-based detection, including detection of ransomware behavior.
Network Threat Prevention blocks the exploit avenues some ransomware attacks rely on. At the first hint of a possible ransomware attack, Ransomware Remediation backs up important files, restoring them after Bitdefender neutralizes the attack. Ransomware necessarily modifies your important files, replacing them with encrypted versions.
One simple defense is to ban all changes to files in protected locations unless the program making the change is authorized. Avast Premium Security , Panda, and Trend Micro are among the suites that employ this type of ransomware protection.
There are a few problems with this technique. First, it adds a speed bump any time you edit files with a new valid program. Second, and more important, it relies on the user to decide whether a file is trustworthy. Maybe your finger slipped, and you clicked Allow by accident. You could accidentally release an attack. The Bitdefender Shield real-time protection components wiped out all my actual ransomware samples on sight.
For testing purposes, I reverted the virtual machine back to a snapshot before that initial cleanup and turned off Bitdefender Shield real-time protection. Almost all my ransomware samples are the common file-encrypting type, though I do have one screen locker and one whole-disk encryptor. Remember, though: I had to disable numerous real-time protection layers to even perform this test. I've occasionally run across ransomware protection systems that don't start early enough at boot time and hence can miss ransomware loaded at startup.
To check Bitdefender's boot-time protection, I copied several samples that triggered protection into the Startup folder and rebooted. Bitdefender eliminated them all. I also tried running KnowBe4's RanSim ransomware simulator. Ransomware-specific protection components are showing up in more and more antivirus products, but most don't go as far as Bitdefender. It blocks unauthorized changes to protected files, detects ransomware behavior, and restores any files that got encrypted before the behavior-based detection kicked in.
Webroot uses behavior-based detection, and its journal-and-rollback system for handling behavior of unknown files can even reverse the effects of ransomware, magically restoring your encrypted files.
Password management is a feature more commonly found in security suites than in standalone antivirus products. Bitdefender's Wallet feature stores passwords, personal information, and credit card details for use on websites. It also saves passwords for applications and Wi-Fi networks.
Wallet has changed very little in the last few versions. It requires a strong master password , separate from your Bitdefender Central password. It allows the creation of multiple wallets password databases , and lets you choose whether to sync between devices or keep passwords local-only. And it automatically captures login credentials as you type them and replays them as needed.
In testing, it managed standard password entry forms but couldn't handle some two-page login systems. Wallet doesn't store as much personal data for web forms as some dedicated password managers, but it correctly filled all the fields that it does store.
When you're signing up for a new account, you can use Wallet's password generator , which defaults to creating character passwords made of letters and numbers. That's a good default length, but I advise enabling the use of special characters, for even stronger passwords. Wallet completely handles the basics of password management but doesn't go much beyond that.
If you want high-end features like automatic password changing, two-factor authentication, secure sharing of credentials, or handling of password inheritance, you should consider a standalone password manager utility. Bitdefender's many layers of antivirus, web, and network protection keep you, your devices, and your data safe. However, when you connect to the internet your data in transit could be at risk.
To ensure privacy for your data, you need a VPN virtual private network. When you connect using a VPN, nobody, not even the owner of the shady Wi-Fi network you're using, can access your network traffic, and you'll be harder to track as you move across the web.
Even the feature-complete Premium VPN required an existing installation of a Bitdefender antivirus or security suite. Please read our full review of the VPN for all details.
Premium users can select the VPN server country from a pull-down menu; those at the basic level must accept whatever server the VPN chooses.
Bitdefender includes a Kill Switch feature, meaning that if the VPN connection drops it cuts the unprotected internet connection until the VPN comes back online. Malwarebytes and Kaspersky Lab were in fifth and fourth place last time; this time they're back but swap places.
They tied with an 8. Bringing up the rear is Norton LifeLock, which got dinged for cost and tech support, and AVG, which got low marks for affecting PC performance as well as for trustworthiness. Not everyone wants a full security suite—they can be expensive, may have tools you don't need, and have a reputation for slowing things down. Those are all good reasons to just get a third-party antivirus protection tool. Many are free and some even work with macOS.
And while we always recommend getting the full suite when you can, PCMag readers believe if you only get antivirus protection, you should get it from Malwarebytes. This is the company's second outing as our AV winner, upping its overall score from 9. All of Malwarebytes' ratings are pretty impressive, receiving a 9.
Webroot also ties with Malwarebytes for ease of use 9. Microsoft is again the runner-up, though it earns top marks over Malwarebytes in categories we've mentioned before ease of use and setup and performance where it's impossible to outperform a tool integrated into the operating system.
When it comes to non-paid protection, readers again think Microsoft's Windows Defender is doing the job perfectly well, so why pay? As in years past, AVG and Avast, which are essentially the same products both now from the same Czechoslovakian company are at the bottom.
That leaves Driver updater. This tool works much like the software updater, but it seeks drivers that can be updated to improve performance. Wonder of wonders, the Update all button actually works!
One of the few bonuses you do get with the upgrade is Web Protection. Where the Browser Safety extension only works in supported browsers, Web Protection acts at the network level, aiming to keep all web-connected programs from hooking up with dangerous URLs. Unfortunately, this feature is simply terrible. Every time I review this product, I comment that I don't understand why Avira doesn't take the clearly superior detection technology in Browser Safety and apply it to Web Protection.
As it is, if you use a browser other than Chrome, Edge, Opera, or Firefox, you get no protection in the free edition and painfully limited protection in Pro.
To test this component, I turned off real-time protection, verified that ransomware protection remained enabled, and launched a dozen real-world ransomware samples, one at a time, in a virtual machine cut off from the internet. The results were abysmal. The file encrypting samples encrypted files and demanded ransom, and the one whole-disk encryptor ran unhindered, turning my virtual machine into a virtual brick.
The Protection Options page clearly showed Ransomware protection turned on and Real-time protection turned off, but that proved to be false. As with Trend Micro, I couldn't truly test Avira's ransomware-specific abilities, because Real-time protection wiped out all the samples. Most malware attacks come over the Internet, but there are a few malware families that spread using infected USB devices.
Some high-end security suites include device control, a business-centered feature that lets an administrator ban the use of unknown USB drives but allow specific approved USBs. The only way I know to access it is convoluted. You click Security, click Protection options, click the settings gear icon next to Real-time protection, and find Device Protection in the settings list.
ESET lets you time-schedule your call blocking, for example, to allow only family members to call you at night. Trend Micro offers to scan your Facebook settings and warn about any security problems.
So, which one should you choose? It depends on just what you need to protect, but we assume you want a suite that at least installs on your Windows and Android devices. McAfee Antivirus Plus is an Editors' Choice winning antivirus, with protection for unlimited devices.
Kaspersky Security Cloud and Norton Deluxe are both Editors' Choice picks for cross-platform security suites , and both get excellent lab scores on Windows and Android.
Bitdefender Total Security likewise pulls in top lab scores and offers a cornucopia of features on Windows; it's our Editors' Choice winner for security mega-suite. You won't go wrong with one of these four, but the others have their own merits.
Click through the links, read the full reviews, and make your choice. By Neil J. Rubenking Dec. Top Picks. Best For Unusual Bonus Features. Bitdefender's Total Security mega-suite combines a bonanza of security components and bonus features in a single integrated package.
Best For Multi-Device Households. Kaspersky Security Cloud is a security suite that lets you install and manage top-notch security on up to 10 PCs, Macs, phones, and tablets. In addition to cross-platform security, hosted online backup, and tons of security features, Norton Deluxe gives you a no-limits VPN and full-featured parental control system. It's a high-security bargain. Other products may score better in testing, but none of them offer a deal like this. Best For Cross-Platform Users.
AVG Internet Security defends your devices with powerful antivirus tools and protects against ransomware, but its extra security tools may not be enough to lure away free users. PROS Excellent scores in multiple independent lab tests and on our hands-on tests Includes webcam, data, and firewall protection Improved system performance Slick interface CONS Persistent upsells Single-device plan is expensive Did not prevent a ransomware sample from running at startup during testing Initial and boot-time scan are slow.
Best For Forward-Looking Users. If you're going to buy any Avira software, Avira Prime is the one to get, as it includes every free and paid tool from Avira. However, even with its entire posse of apps it can't top the best cross-platform multi-device security suites.
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